April 2012 Newsletter - KDA132

Helen standing by GEN39. Sir Reginald is in the driver’s seat.
This was published in the June 2012 edition of The Automobile
magazine. The car was painted from new as “Buff” and “Nigger
Brown” with “Nigger Brown” upholstery. All external fittings
were nickel plated and interior fittings were silver plate and white
ivory.
Sir Reginald sold it on 5 January 1940 to Rolls-Royce with a
£50 trade-in on an experimental Rolls-Royce Wraith, chassis
27GVI, later WXA6. G Newman & Co purchased GEN39 for
£35. It was then acquired by the RAF and the rear converted into
an ambulance. After the war it was used as a coal van, and in
Following the tour, in 1998 it was sold via The Real Car Co to
an owner in California who travelled under 3,000 miles before it
was resold by The Real Car Co to its last UK owner in 2008. John
Fasal, who wrote the book on the Twenty lived only a mile from
GEN39 and knew the car well.
Unbelievably, in the same 2008 issue of the RREC (UK)
Advertiser there was a private sale of a partly restored 1928 20
H.P. Hooper Coupé with dickey, and the new owners of both cars
were located only four miles apart, although neither owner was to
see each other in the cars in the time they owned them. This 20
H.P. was recently advertised and sold by P&A Wood in just a week
for £80,000.
The last three photographs show the car as purchased. The
Laycock overdrive makes for relaxed cruising at around 55mph
1970 it was laid up in a barn in Berkshire by its sixth owner. The
photograph was taken in 1984.
In the early 1990s it was purchased by James Black Restorations
of Northern Ireland, who decided to restore it over four years for
a tour to Jerusalem. The rear of the car was converted back to a
coupé with dickey. The photograph shows the woodwork prior to
new aluminium panels being made. The chassis was fully stripped
and totally restored with most parts purchased from Jack Barclays
– many thousands of pounds were spent as the invoices testify.
The self-drive tour from Belfast to Jerusalem was a return trip of
and it also works in third gear for winding roads and hills. The
non-synchromesh 4-speed gearbox is relatively easy to use and the
coupé bodywork is light compared to many 20 H.P. cars. The main
reason Rolls-Royce fitted the larger 3.6 litre engine in the 20/25
H.P. was over-bodying of the 20 H.P. with 7-seater limousines.
Royce had only intended the chassis to have lightweight bodies
fitted, and complained bitterly to the Sales Department. He said
the Phantom chassis was made for the fitment of large bodies.
We look forward to many trouble free miles in Dr. Finlay.
8,500 miles across the three continents of Europe, North Africa and
Asia. A similar route from London to Jerusalem had already been
travelled in a 1926 20 H.P. tourer in 2006 by another enthusiastic
owner! The tour was completed during August/September 1997,
and was trouble free. There are two selected photographs from
the album that give a feel of what it was like. James said it always
attracted many onlookers.
NZRR&BC Issue 12-4 15